O.C. BUSINESS PLUS

Buy.com Is Given 2 Months to Avoid Delisting of Its Stock

Internet: Nasdaq sets a May 31 deadline for the Aliso Viejo company to raise its shares above $1.

Buy.com Inc., an Internet retailer struggling to remain in business, said its stock may be removed from trading on the Nasdaq National Market because the price has been under $1 a share for more than 30 days.

The Aliso Viejo company has been given until May 31 to regain compliance with the Nasdaq's minimum bid requirement or face delisting, the company said Thursday in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The online merchant's shares have fallen more than 99% from their closing high of $26.44 on their first day of trading in February 2000.

The company has never made a profit and last month cut 125 jobs, or about half its work force, in a bid to slash costs and restructure the company for profitability.

Executives at Buy.com, which sells computers, software and other merchandise, were not available for comment.

The company said it had cash and marketable securities totaling $67.5 million at the end of December, a sufficient amount to fund its operations through this year.

The filing also said Buy.com expects to "incur substantial operating losses in the near term and we may never achieve profitability."

The stock last closed at $1 on Jan. 26. On Thursday, the stock rose 3 cents to close at 25 cents a share.